Stats

Lifespan: Up to 2 yrs
Size: Small
Diet: Insectivore
Activity: Nocturnal
Social: Solitary
Biome: Temperate forest
Range: North America
Movement: Climbing
Breeding: Egg-laying
Defense: Venom
Status: Common

About

A small cobweb-spinning spider found in homes worldwide, easily recognised by its mottled brown abdomen and tangled, irregular webs in corners. Females can live for over a year and routinely capture prey several times their own size.

Life cycle

1.
egg sac
A silk-wrapped egg sac shelters a clutch of eggs until the young are ready to emerge.
2.
juvenile
A spiderling emerges from the egg sac already in miniature adult form and starts catching prey almost immediately.
3.
subadult
A near-adult arachnid molts through several instars, growing larger and developing mature markings.
4.
adult
Fully grown after its final molt.

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Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Family: Theridiidae
Genus: Parasteatoda
Species: Parasteatoda tepidariorum